As White House chiefs of staff for George W. Bush, Andy Card and Josh Bolten controlled access to the Oval Office. Wednesday night, it was the same kinda deal at the party for Bush 43 alums, which they hosted at the Katy Trail Ice House.

For an hour, Card and Bolten manned the check-in tables so they could greet every guest as they arrived. Joining them at the third table was former Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove.

“They wanted to see everybody, so they were there to check them in,” explains Ice House managing partner Buddy Cramer.

The presence of twin sisters Barbara Bush and Jenna Bush Hager classified it as an A-list event.

But around 10:45 p.m., the people watching got dialed up to 11 when former VP Dick Cheney strolled in looking like a shorter, quieter version of Lyndon Johnson with a short-brimmed cowboy hat.

No longer moving the levers of government, the Bushies enjoyed a more carefree evening in Dallas than President Barack Obama and his staff.

The support network that follows the president of the United States moved in its Secret Service bubble from Dallas Love Field to the Strait Lane home of Naomi Aberly and Larry Lebowitz and finally to the Omni Hotel where Michelle and Barack Obama spent the night with the nuclear launch codes just outside their door.

The 43 alums?

Well, they were throwing back some brews at the Ice House at a party.

Even the smile-averse former White House counsel Harriet Miers appeared to be enjoying herself as did former West Wing insider Karen Hughes and Sen. Ted Cruz.